christian louboutin in christian louboutin

on thursday, designer christian louboutin and french actress farida khelfa attended the "fashion dinner for aids" in paris. the designer wore a pair of his studded "louis" sneakers from the current spring 2010 collection. the pairing of the sneakers with the suit just gave it an edgier feel. i love the sneakers, it's really growing on me.

the wide lapels, checks and crotchet tie suggest to me that his outfit was from tom ford. and i am also loving his houndstooth flat cap, which i believed was from philip treacy, but can't find any other pics of it.

it must be love, love , l00o00ve.

credit: getty images

+

pringle of scotland fall winter 2010

bastiaan ninaber for pringle of scotland fall winter 2010

erm what's his name? anyway, we will all be wearing gargantuan furry gloves/mittens next winter!



+

trussardi 1911 fall winter 2010 accessories

here's a little preview of what's to come from the house of trussardi come fall winter 2010:

my personal favourite is this portfolio/laptop sleeve, with straps at the front to allow one to hold their magazine or daily tabloid. the design is similar to delvaux's newspaper bag, but i like both versions. the folio appeared to look like tweed, but it's actually coated canvas, which makes it very lightweight and easy to care for.

i think it's a very masculine and stylish piece, i could use it for work daily.

close up of the coated canvas

wondered why it was the IHT on the folios?

trussardi creative director milan vukmirovic shot model garrett neff for the house's spring 2010 campaign, which adorned the cover of IHT during milan menswear week. speaking of garrett, i saw him in milan at one of the streets, but am too shy to approach him for a pic. he really is perfection.

keepalls, one of trussardi's classic pieces, get reinterpreted in grey coated canvas.

metallic embellishments seem to be the trend for fall 2010. we see it on shoulders, sleeves, coats, and now belts. my personal favourite:

it's just exquisite. i want one too...

i love trussardi's sneakers. i saw a pair from their spring 2010 collection which i really like, will blog about it soon. for fall 2010, the sneakers come in a myriad of colors and materials combination.

i love the accessories. it's very classic and wearable. pieces that you can easily integrate with those in your wardrobe. and it's great that at presentations like this, we get to feel and examine the products up close. i must have spent like a great big chunk of my afternoon browsing around, but i loved every minute of it.

click here for more of my pics of their fall 2010 ready to wear.
+

topman lens spring 2010

arriving in stores and online from february 2010 is a new collection of topman lens items. i am totally crazy over this top with rope detailing. i NEED it now! i have to check it out at topman this weekend, i hope they have it already.

NEED!

source: topman



+

sjaak hullekes fall winter 2010

when i was in milan last week, i had great pleasure in meeting sjaak and his team, and to check out his fall winter 2010 collection. i previously featured the lookbook pics here, and was really excited to see the collection in person. here were a few pieces that i really like:

i really like the subtle detailings on this shirt. the small but perfectly formed collars, the unfinished hems, the gold tone logo proudly sewn on.

we've previous seen the mink coat on his preview pics:

and here's the coat in all it's glory:

i would have squeezed myself into that if i could!

the blazers were nicely tailored, again with subtle detailings to make everything a little more special.

i asked sjaak if the current economic crisis made any impact in terms of his designs (ie, why the mink coat!). in his words, he mentioned that a designer needs to maintain a certain degree of naivety. if one is designing solely for the market, you'll lose some of the reasons for getting into designing in the first place. hence the collection was aptly titled "small town boy". the small town boy is looking at the big city with a degree of innocence and purity.

his words resonated with me. i was previously banging about how designers doesn't connect with consumers, how they should do more of certain things to gain a bigger market share. but life is bigger than that. there's no need for hurried global domination, it's about the journey isn't it.

i am a small town boy (ok man) living in the big smoke. maybe that's why i love this collection dearly.

and a pic of the wonderfully stylish sjaak hullekes. i would so steal that cardigan/knit off him if i could squeeze into it.

check out pics of his collection here.


+

what is luxury?

luxury isn't about spending £120 on a pot of eye cream and slabbing it quickly before going to bed. luxury could be spending £20 on eye creams, and finding 20mins to massage and indulge. so time could define luxury.

and time equates money. but luxury doesn't necessary equate money.

luxury is not about buying a £2,500 jacket just because one can. money cannot buy style, and high prices low availability promises of exclusivity, doesn't necessary define luxury.

luxury should also not be a commodity. a commodity is a product for which there is demand, but which is supplied without differentiation, that is the same no matter who produces it. so terms like "affordable luxury" or "luxury for the masses" should not exist. it is insincere, so i will also not use it in future.

luxury doesn't have to be tangible or cost the earth, it could be an hour to oneself, to relax, to indulge, with a tub of ice cream or not. although a tub of green and black's could be considered a luxury, a splurge, as considered to say, a cone of cornetto.

luxury is using my favourite scent, the now near empty bottle of helmut lang "cuiron". every drop so precious and poignant, knowing it is no longer in production.

luxury is not about excesses. it doesn't mean owning ten £1,000 bags, or owning one £1,000 bag for which 10,000 were made.

luxury could be the feeling of soft cashmere brushing against the skin.

so luxury is a feel, but most likely not a look. a cashmere sweater with metallic embellishments could be done in wool or cotton instead, but the feel would be lost. the sweater doesn't need to be in cashmere, but luxury isn't about a need, it's a want.

so luxury is a want.

pic credit: hommemodel

can't do a blog post without pics can i? speaking about wants: i want the... boots from louis vuitton fall winter 2010. want, very much.

but luxury is also not wanting to put on a £800 pair of northamptonshire hand made shoes, but a pair of £25 well beaten converse sneakers on a sunday because one feels comfortable dressing down.

so luxury is about comfort, a mindset, a state of being, of not living by peoples' opinions.

luxury is often not for show, it's whispered not shouted.

luxury is not dressing up in the finest threads but still feeling empty. luxury is happiness and radiance from within. but what is happiness? like happiness, luxury can rarely be defined.

luxury hasn't lost it's lustre, we just need to understand it better.

+

backstage at john varvatos

one of my favourite models, bastiaan ninaber backstage at john varvatos. we had a little chat, he is actually very friendly. the thing about models is that you can put them in a bin liner and they still look good. i am really liking his laidback dress down style. ever the perfectionist, he asked that i retake my previous two pics as he wasn't satisfied with it. very cool guy, hope i can photograph him again.

and he is only 20 years old. god i feel ancient.

bastiaan ninaber for john varvatos fall winter 2010



+

burberry prorsum fall winter 2010 military button knit

i took pics of this stunning showpiece when i revisited the collection. for those unaware, the word "prorsum" is latin for "forward". the burberry equestrian knight charged forward, carrying a flag which spelt out "prorsum". this collection is a salute to their heritage, in which they started off making coats for the british officers. like decorative medals adorning a soldier, this is one stunning knitwear fit for a warrior.

burberry prorsum fall winter 2010

amazingly, the collection is now available for pre-order at luisaviaroma. though not entirely practical, i have a feeling this piece will sell out very quickly. come on, let's have a guess: how much do you think this will retail for?

i guess... £800+



+

+

backstage at neil barrett fall winter 2010

model josh beech being interviewed by fashion tv, stumbling a few times as he forgot which season he's modelling for. i arrived on the same flight as him, and he looked at me suspiciously as i kept staring at him ha! he is painfully skinny, i wanted to pass him a cheeseburger, with bacon, and a large coke.


+

trussardi 1911 fall winter 2010 - RTW

here are a few pics that i took from trussardi 1911's fall winter 2010 presentation:

the trousers were cut lean but not skinny, sweaters colorful and relaxed to create a feeling of spontaneous elegance. i really like the silhouette of the second look, something i would wear day in day out.

the coats were beautifully tailored, and adorned with very interesting details:

this is a classic coat which they will be revisiting every season. the lower half of the coat can be detached via the zips, and one can get separate attachments to fit the coat. the above grey checks piece is reversible, with black on the other side, thus giving us a simple black coat is we wish. 1 coat, several looks, very smart idea.

pieces were also mixed with leather to form a different look.

one of my favourites is this asymmetric black coat with really beautiful detailings on the cuffs/sleeves. a very stunning show piece.

close up of the detailings

my absolute favourite? the double collar grey wool coat. double collar seems to be the new trend, i've seen it at burberry prorsum, neil barrett, prada, and now at trussardi. the coat will make any office attire looks smart, or any casual affair looks utterly chic. i really really like it, regret not trying it on now.

coming up next, the accessories from trussardi 1911 fall winter 2010. oh 2011 will be their centenary, i am expecting lots of celebrations and exclusive products!

+

mika in christian louboutin men's "freddy" flats and lanvin accessories

why is everyone wearing louboutin shoes all of a sudden? on saturday, pop sensation mika attended the NRJ 2010 music awards in cannes. the helium voiced singer arrived on the red carpet with too much make-up, trousers that were slightly too long, a loop sided bow tie and a gorgeous pair of christian louboutin "freddy" flats.


the "freddy" flats is a unisex design. i've seen the men's version at their mount street store in london, retailing for about £950. though full of studs, it is still amazingly lightweight. the women's version retails for £630, available online at browns. i don't know why the price difference. more importantly, i don't know why shoes are this insanely expensive!

kevin from myMANybags bought a pair recently. click here to read about his experience.

a close up of the lebanon born singer revealed a rather pretty white shirt with interesting detailing, a feather bow tie and an embroidered elephant pin.

the pins were featured in lanvin spring summer 2010 menswear, which they pinned to the ties.

i saw the pins in the shops and rather like them, but can't find an excuse to buy them. the cute little elephant lapel/tie pins are available online at luisaviaroma for £120 / €133.

i'm really intrigued and fascinated by mika's feathered bow tie, which i think is from lanvin fall winter 2008, but i am not 100% certain. any lanvin experts please feel free to chip in.

he is not what you think he is, he is golden.



source: getty images / gq.com

+

maison martin margiela fall winter 2010

for their latest collection, maison martin margiela did a very interesting showcase. they had the models sitting by the tables against a very similar backdrop. most of the clothes were in shades of black, white and grey, inspired by the black and white photos from the bygone era.

my favourite look has to be this beautifully tailored coat, paired with a white shirt with very interesting detailings. i really really like the shirt.

view more pieces from this collection here.

+